The Best In Coaching: Articles: Sure you can earn 6 figures coaching without any training

There always seems to be some debate regarding two issues in coaching:

can you make lots of money?
do you need training?

An article recently put out by MSN suggests the answer is yes to both:

“About 20 percent of the 10,000 registered coaches earn six figure incomes, according to estimates from industry veterans. No special degree or training is required. And while some provide specific expertise, such as those hired by large companies to train a sales staff, others rake in money from those looking for little more than a cheerleader as they open a business or try their hand at writing a book. And along with the growth of coaching come derivative businesses that cater to them.”

Oh really, well what is the research behind that. Here is a press release that is much more founded:

“The number of life coaches has risen to more than 30,000 ten years after the profession of life coaching began. Together, Wood and Falter-Barns reach more than 20,000 of these coaches through the websites, blogs and ezine lists of their companies, Get Known Now and Solution Box.com. Wood is former Publicity Chair of the International Coach Federation and founder of 15 coaching related web sites, and Falter-Barns is a former New York marketing consultant and successful self help author.

In the survey, 73% of life coaches said their main reason for coaching is to ‘have a greater impact on people.’ Yet a full 49% said their biggest challenge with their business was filling their practice. Only 29% of all coaches surveyed reported that they earned more than $25,000 annually.”

Consistent with that here is an excerpt of an interview with Stephen Fairley that I attended a couple of years back:

You conducted some ground breaking research into the business practices of coaches nationwide. Could you tell us more about your research?

I believe this is the very first survey of its kind. In 2002, I surveyed over 300 coaches nationwide to discover what worked and what didn’t in terms of: sales & marketing practices, finances, packaging and pricing their services, partnering with other coaches, coach training and certification, and a number of other areas. Then I analyzed the data to find out what specific areas separate financially successful coaches from financially unsuccessful coaches. The results form the foundation of this book.

Can you share some of the most interesting findings?

Some of the statistics are quite startling:

· 73% of all coaches make less than $10,000 in their first year.

· Only 60% of all second-year coaches have managed to find 10 paying clients.

· Less than 11% of coaches make more than $50,000 by their second year in practice.

· Even though coaches charge an average of $160 an hour for their services, 53% of them make less than $20,000 a year.

· 30% of all coaches have never been able to find 10 paying clients.

· Only 9% of coaches are currently making more than $100,000 a year coaching.
Stephen Fairley, president of Today’s Leadership Coaching, is a Business Coach, a speaker, and the author of 3 books including “Getting Started in Personal and Executive Coaching.” He can be reached at Stephen@TodaysLeadership.com or 888-588-5891. You can order his book from Amazon.com or from his website: http://www.TodaysLeadership.com